by Adam Ghassemi
SPRINGFIELD, Tenn. – Raw sewage and anything else people flush down the toilet is ending up in yards, and even local streams. It's become a disgusting, but familiar reality nearly every time it rains. Residents said the problem has been happening for years.
Parts of the Springfield sewer system are 60 to 70-years old. Aging underground problems could mean the city and homeowners get stuck with a massive bill for past mistakes.
Elise Garrard has lived at her home on Linda Lane for seven years with an annoyance she expects nearly every time it rains.
"You're going to have to clean up toilet paper, condoms and tampons. Just whatever somebody flushes is laying in my yard," she said.
The manhole in her front yard is just one part of an aging Springfield sewer system that Roger Lemasters said was never built correctly in the first place.
"In the past we had sewers installed incorrectly on purpose," he said. "It's the cheapest way to do it like that certainly. We're now reaping the benefits, if you will, of that past practice."
The problem is many homes have their down spouts or even sump pumps tied directly to the sanitary sewer. Meaning with heavy rain raw sewage can quickly overflow into nearby streams.
"It makes my whole yard look bad because when it floods, it floods the whole yard," Garrard said.
Now the EPA is getting involved and it could cost millions - a problem shared by the city and homeowners whose homes have been wrongly connected for decades.
"The frustration is going to be trying to convince homeowners and the city council that we're going to have to require homeowners to spend money to fix something that's on their property that has been going on for years and years," Lemasters said.
For Garrard, a fix to no longer live with filth can't come soon enough.
"I'm going to have to move in the next year or so if they don't try to fix something," she went on to say.
Lemasters said overflows were never reported properly until he took over eight years ago. That's why the EPA is demanding something change now.
Next week Springfield leaders will meet with the federal agency to work out a plan to spend millions fixing the sewer over the next few years.
It's not clear how many homes will have to make changes or how much it would cost. The city plans to conduct smoke tests to see which homes need to be disconnected from the system. They are also working on a plan to keep homes and restaurants from pouring grease down the drain.
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